Sunday, July 24, 2011

NFL Players Assocation Balks at Debt Ceiling Bill

With talks of both an unprecedented government default and a late start to the 2011 NFL season, the NFL Players Association reported on Sunday that they are still not ready to sign the debt ceiling bill sponsored by Tea Party members of the House of Representatives, which was recently passed on to the Senate.

Despite the fact that the NFL owners approved the bill to end the lock out of the debt ceiling, George Wilson, the player representative for the Buffalo Bills, called the owners' vote and subsequent news conference pathetic, adding, "Their unwillingness to compromise is pushing us to the brink of a default on the full faith and credit of the United States. We have run out of time for politics. Now is the time for cooperation."

Commissioner Roger Goodell, the NFL owners and congressional aides expressed hope that their vote would lead to a speedy resolution to the NFL's first work stoppage since 1987 while also immediately increasing the debt ceiling by about $1 trillion. They called it an equitable deal that improves player safety, allows the sport to prosper even more, and will keep stocks from declining sharply amid talks of a government default.

"It is time to get back to football," a weary Goodell said during an evening news conference at an Atlanta-area hotel. "Even if that means blitzing the Senate Democrats every down from here on out."

House Speaker John Boehner (pronounced by this blog as "Boner") told rank-and-file Republican National League players in a conference call he hoped to be able to announce a "viable framework for progress" by 4 p.m. EDT on Sunday, before the stock markets open in Japan and elsewhere in Asia, according to two participants. He also added that rookies shouldn't get paid $90 million like that a-hole Jamarcus Russel.

If the NFL players approve the deal, Congress would get back to work right away, with some House Republicans saying that they've been training in the off-season to film the rival Democrats' sidelines and go over the tape at halftime.